Month: July 2025

EXTREME TEMPERATURES – The surface temperature of Mercury ranges from -180°C at night to 430°C during the day due to its lack of atmosphere.

NO ATMOSPHERE – Mercury has an extremely thin atmosphere, primarily composed of oxygen, sodium, hydrogen, helium, and potassium, making it almost a vacuum.

MERCURY’S ORBIT – The elliptical path that Mercury takes around the Sun, completing one revolution in about 88 Earth days.

SOLAR PARTICLE EVENTS – Events where the Sun emits bursts of energetic particles that can disrupt space-based technologies.

MAGNETIC RECONNECTION – A process by which magnetic field lines rearrange and release energy, contributing to solar flares and CMEs.

SOLAR MINIMUM – The period of least solar activity, with a low number of sunspots and minimal solar flares and CMEs.

SOLAR MAXIMUM – The period of greatest solar activity in the 11-year solar cycle, marked by a peak in sunspot number and solar flare frequency.

SPACECRAFT SHIELDING – The materials used to protect spacecraft and astronauts from the harmful effects of solar wind and cosmic radiation.

INTERPLANETARY MAGNETIC FIELD (IMF) – The magnetic field carried by the solar wind throughout the solar system.